“Mom, The Monkeys Woke Me Up” – Pulau Redang

We just returned from Pulau Redang where we spent three days on a PUGSOM faculty retreat. ‘Pulau’ is Malay for island. Pulau Redang, just off Malaysia’s east coast, is about a one hour plane ride from KL. Our adventure began with an early morning taxi ride to the airport followed by another taxi ride to a ferry. (Side note: Mary’s totally enjoying the phonetic spelling of western words translated into Malay. taxi = ‘teksi’, sauce = ‘sos’, ice cream = ‘aiskrem’)

Picture in your mind your image of tropical paradise. That’s Pulau Redang. We stayed at a small resort, Wisana – PUGSOM faculty and families (19 people) filled nearly every room – steps from the softest white sand beach and clear blue, blue ocean surrounded by a colorful coral reef. The only way in and out of the resort is by boat. We filled the days scuba diving, swimming, napping, reading, snorkeling (the kids found Nemo in an anemone!), playing games, eating great food, climbing gorgeous rock formations, and getting to know the wonderful PUGSOM faculty and their families. And yes, one morning, monkeys woke Violet and Tyler up as they jumped on the roof to get to the coconut trees in front of our villa. Near the end of our visit, our wonderful resort host took us on a hike up the cliffs behind the resort for a spectacular view of the island.

Tyler and Brian enjoying a nap!

These are the monkeys that woke Violet up.

A huge thank you to Charlie for planning the adventure, finding this resort, and hiring a spectacular group of people!